As American society changed from an agrarian culture to an industrialized nation, people moved to cities for work, in hopes of improving their quality of life. The subsequent increase in urban population density had a great impact on garbage disposal practices. The rural custom of placing waste in fields or beside roadways led to the piling up of garbage in the streets, waterways and vacant lots, and in open pits. This type of garbage disposal brought with it odor, rodents, pestilence, and most importantly, a serious public health problem. By 1946, the responsibility for garbage disposal shifted from scavengers to scientifically minded civil engineers whose experimentation with various ways to properly dispose of waste, including feeding it to hogs, open pit burning, and incineration, led to the widespread use of sanitary landfills.

Monument of the Millennium for Sanitary Landfills To Be Determined.